RESERVE ENLISTEE WEDS TWO WINGS AT BEALE

  • Published
  • By SMSgt. Ellen L Hatfield
  • 940th Air Refueling Wing
BEALE AIR FORCE BASE, Calif. --  The enlistment of Stephanie Stallings in the Reserve's 940th Air Refueling Wing gave new meaning to the concept of total force integration here.

Her husband, Lt. Col. Kirt Stallings, is the 9th Reconnaissance Wing's director of staff, and former chief of safety.

As a network intelligence analyst for the Reserve's 50th Intelligence Squadron, she will be working on the same mission as her husband, who is a U-2 pilot.

Stephanie, now a senior airman, was given the oath of enlistment by the 940th's Chief of Safety, Lt. Col. Lew Harding, who was instrumental in bringing her back into the Air Force fold.

A strong professional working relationship and friendship developed between the two safety chiefs, as they have worked side by side to keep the Airmen here safe on the ground and in the air. Col. Harding often backfilled for Col. Stallings while he was deployed or on temporary duty, and they shared their expertise during base exercises and inspections.

Stephanie, a prior active duty C-130 loadmaster, had long contemplated returning to the Air Force blue. With encouragement from Col. Harding and the total support of her husband, she made her commitment. You might say the Stallings bleed blue; both their fathers are retired from the Air Force.

Married on Dec. 29, 2005, the couple - a California girl and a Texan, met here after she had left active duty to attend the University of California at Berkeley on a Regents and Chancellors scholarship. She graduated with a bachelor's degree in political science.

Although Stephanie will have to leave her husband behind while she attends technical school at Goodfellow Air Force Base, Texas, he deploys in May to command the 99th Expeditionary Reconnaissance Squadron in Southwest Asia, which will separate them for a year.

"He's been deployed about half the time we've been married, but it seems to work" she said, smiling.

Col. Harding believes that the Stallings are the first couple here to marry the active duty and reserve wings, literally.

"This couple typifies the building of the relationship between the associate unit and the active duty wing," he said. "Kirt is on the front end, flying the mission, and Stephanie will be in the background, analyzing the Intel he sends back."

He said he was honored to enlist her, and be a part of total force integration in action.

"We need to see more of this in the future - two total force wings building a relationship -- one-on-one. Our safety offices have done it successfully, and public affairs does it well, too. This is the key to our success, because we're all working the same missions."

"It's a good fit for me," said Stephanie. "I'm looking forward to being in the 940th, and working the Intel mission."